Houstonia Magazine has taken home five awards and one honorable mention from the Society for Features Journalism.

The national organization, which awards the best features writing and journalism in the country, announced the winners on Tuesday, June 9, on the organization’s website and Instagram. Houstonia is categorized as Division 1, which designates publications with 50 or fewer editorial staff members.

Senior Arts & Culture editor Meredith Nudo earned second place for arts and culture criticism for her stories on Houston Grand Opera’s Porgy and Bess production, the Finding Ben documentary, and artist Tomashi Jackson’s homecoming and exhibition at the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston.

Former News & City Life editor Erica Cheng took home two awards. She won first place for the general commentary portfolio categories for her stories:  “Living in the Sprawl,” “Don’t Call It Asiatown,” and the lively explainer, “Why Isn’t Houston Considered Texas’s Weirdest City?” She won second place for general feature story (999 words or less) for “713 Day Is Houston’s Annual Citywide Holiday. Thank Rapper Lil’ Keke,” a story that dives into the history of the Houston “notliday.”

Former Food & Travel editor Sofia Gonzalez won first place in the first-person/narrative essay category for her touching essay “How Menudo Came to Define Family and Holidays,” and took home an honorable mention for “In Houston, Fusion Isn’t a Fad—It’s the Future,” a story on Space City’s unique amalgamation of cuisines.

As a result, Houstonia racked up some of the most awards of any Division 1 publication across 18 categories, placing third overall, earning it a top honor in the Finest in Features Sweepstakes.

On behalf of the Houstonia team, we’d like to thank you for trusting us with your stories. Thank you for reading.